Shield for shoe racks



y 10, 1951 I I H. A. TOMARIN 2,560,314

SHIELD FOR SHOE RACKS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 25, 1948 34 JNVE R FIG 4 40 o HARRY A. TOMA July 10, 1951 H. A. TOMARIN SHIELD FOR SHOE RACKS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 25, 1948 INVENTOR. HARRY A. TOMARIN ATTO NE patented July 10, 195i SHIELD FOR, SHOE RACKS Harry A. Tomarin, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor t0. Loroco Industries Incorporated, Reading, Ohio, a corporation of ()hio Application February 25, 1948, Serial No. 10,862

, This invention relates to covers, and in particular to so-called shoe rack shields or covers for protecting Shoes from damage, due to scuffing, staining, marring, and the like, incident to and during their manufacture.

Shoe racks may be divided broadly into two basic types; the so-called pin or dowel type, and the paddle type. Heretofore it has been common practice to cover the dowels or paddles of shoe racks with fabric, special paints, plastic coatings, or preformed molded covers made of hardened, tough, non-absorptive paper, such as disclosed in the United States DiDomenico Patent No. 2,221,298.

Fabric covering has the inherent disadvantage of being expensive, difficult to apply and remove, impossible to keep clean and, once saturated with dye or'stain becomes dry and hard. If the dye orgstain remains moist and has not set, an inkp ad' effect is'obtained'. Hardened or dried dye oristain-imparts an unwanted abrasive characteristic to the covering. The ink-pad effect of wet ,dyeor stain is even more objectionable.

Z1W-hen fabric coverings are employed, the usual imaterial from which they are fabricated is cottonor flannel which is upholstered onto the shoe supporting members. When stain or dye dries in and on such upholstered material, the fabric becomes wrinkled and caked, thereby increasing the abrasive effectiveness of the dried stain.

Special paints and plastic coatings have the inherent disadvantages of high initial cost, lack of desired cushioning characteristics, difliculty of cleaning and inability to absorb dye and stain deposited thereon. The stain, if allowed to dry, forms a hard blister like formation, on the outer surface of the paint or plastic, which has abrasive characteristics; If the stain does not dry it will remain as a wet spot on the surface of the paint or plastic thereby making it necessary for the operator to carefully wipe and clean the shoe supporting surfaces each time a shoe or shoe form is removed therefrom, or the shoe will be damaged.

The molded, hardened, non-absorptive covers have the inherent disadvantage of being expensive from the standpoint of literally having to be custom-made for each and every one of the numerous different types and styles of shoe racks used by different shoe manufacturers. This type of cover is likewise subject to the same disadvantages hereinabove enumerated relative to paint and plastic covering media.

' An object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive, disposable, universal shoe 11 Claims. (01. 211-34) rack shield or cover fabricated from paper stock characterized by its cushioning and absorptive qualities, and which is further characterized by its ability to conform with the contour of the supporting members of a shoe rack, whereby the need for fabricating special, made-to-order, shiel'ds or cover members for each of the various shapes, sizes and types of shoe racks commercially used, may be dispensed with. I 4

When using my shields or cover members; the shoe stain or dye is absorbed into the cover in a manner analogous to the absorption of ink into a blotter, the dye being disposed and dried interiorly of thecover rather than on the surface.

Unlike upholstered cover members, my shields will not curl or wrinkle or be distorted by the dye absorbed therein.

A further object of my invention is to provide a universal type shoe rackshield or cover having the hereinabove described characteristics, the cost of which is so low as to enable manufacturers of shoes to change shields or cover memberswith each batch of different color shoes being manufactured. That is, the shields may be changed after a run of shoes ofany one color. If desired, such shields may be set aside and re-' used when shoes of the same color are again beind produced. Although my shield is quite inexpensive, tests have indicated that they may be used Without special handling, and when subjected to the normal wear and tear to which such devices are put incident to commercial manufacturing techniques, for periods of timeranging from three to four months. 7

Another object of my invention is to provide an inexpensive, universal, disposable type of shield for shoe racks which though fabricated from a soft, absorptive type of paper may, nevertheless, be effectively locked to the supporting pins or paddles of. a shoe rack for precluding accidental or unintentional disengagement of. the shield from the rack.

Another object of the invention is to provide a shield or cover member having the hereinabove described characteristics which is also provided with an elevated, hollow toe cushion channel portion adapted to support the toe portion of shoes or shoe forms supported'b the pins, dowels or paddles of a rack. If desired,- the conventional wooden toe strips presently used Withshoe racks may be dispensed with in those. instances where my'shields are used.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a shield or cover member having, a pluralit of tab like members each of which are constructed and arranged to conform to the contour of the supporting members of a shoe rack, said tabs being formed in such a manner as to provide side flaps to overlappingly engage the sides of the supporting members of a shoe rack.

Still a further object is to provide shield or cover members for shoe racks having the hereinabove described characteristics which may be inexpensively and efficiently produced using modern mass production techniques, and without requiring expensive scrapping operations.

These and other objects are attained by the means described herein and as disclosed in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a blank from which shoe rack shields or covers of the present invention may be fabricated.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a cover of Fig. 1 in the process of being associated with a shoe rack of the so-called pin or dowel type, and wherein the adaptability of my cover to shoe racks of the types having pairs of parallel or divergent pins or dowels is illustrated.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the rack and cover of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a blank from which shields or covers for so-called paddle type shoe racks may be fabricated.

Fig. 6 is a plan view of a cover of Fig. 5 associated with paddle-type rack and illustrating various steps in the process of securing the shield to the rack.

Fig. 7 is a plan view of a modified form of blank for paddle-type racks.

Fig. 8 is asectional view taken on line 88 of Fig. 6.

With reference now to Fig. served that a sheet of paper 1, it will be obor other suitable fibrous material characterized by its cushioning and absorbing qualities may be provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts l0 extending inwardly from forward edge 12 of the blank, with the opposite or inner end of each cut terfminating in an arcuate slit l4, said cuts preferably bisecting their respective slits. The inner end of cuts H] are spaced from rear edge It of the blank thereby providing a longitudinal mem-- ber [8, the length dimension of which is substantially equal to the overall'width dimension of the combined widths of tabs 20, 2|, 23, 25, 21, 20 and 3|, formed by cuts II] and slits 14, each tab being secured to member l8, as illustrated.

The length of chord 22 disposed on opposite sides of each out In defines the overall width dimension of an edge flap in and along the side edges of the tabs.

With reference now to Fig. 2, the blank of Fig. 1 has been placed upon a standard pin-type shoe rack which includes pairs of pin or dowel supporting members l9, wherein those members comprising divergent pairs are indicated by the numeral 26. I have likewise illustrated two pairs of parallel dowels, denoted by the numeral 28 adjacent the right end of Fig. 2 for the purpose of illustrating theadapta'bility of my shield or cover member to various styles and modifications of the pin-type racks. It should be understood that in practice, the racks of any one department will be uniform, that is, they will all be of the type including divergent pairs of supporting pins, or they will all be of the type including pairs of parallel pins, however, for the purpose of emphasizing the adaptability of my shield to both types, I have illustrated a hybrid hit rack which has been provided with pairs of divergent and parallel pins.

In Figs. 2 and 4, the numeral 30 indicates the forward edge of a longitudinal rail member 32 from which the various pins or dowels project. The overall length dimension of each tab is preferably of a dimension somewhat greater than the overall length of the shoe supporting members IS. The shield may be associated with a rack by providing edge flaps 34 in and along the side edges of the tabs. flaps of tabs 20 and 2|, and the right edge of tab 23 are shown in the process of being folded downwardly into overlapping engagement with the shoe supporting edges of supporting members of the rack. Both side edges of tab 25, the right edge of tab 23 and the left edge of tab 21 have been folded downwardly and in conformity with the divergent contour of the outer edge of a the adjacent pins of adjoining pairs of shoe supporting members spanned by their respective tabs, thereby providing a protective covering for those portions of the shoe rack engageable by a shoe or shoe form during the process of manufacture.

Both side edges of tab 29, the right edge of tab 2! and the left edge of tab 3| have been folded downwardly to overlappingly engage the outer adjacent pins of adjoining pairs of parallel shoe supporting members 28. It will be observed that tabs 2|, 23, 25, 21 and 29 are constructed and arranged to span the adjacent pins of adjoining pairs of shoe supporting members, thereby providing shoe receptive openings as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3.

With particular reference now to Fig. 4, it will be noted that the inner edge 40 of each side flap, as defined by slit 14 provides, when the flap has been folded downwardly, a depending rearwardly extending abutment engageable with the front or forward face 30 of rail section 32 adjacent the intersection of a supporting member therewith. This construction effectively precludes accidental or unintentional rearward shifting of a shield relative to its associated rack incident to the insertion or removal of shoes or shoe forms from their respective supporting members. 7

With reference now to Figs. 2 and 4, it will be noted that an elevated, hollow toe cushion channel may be provided in longitudinal member l8 wherein said channel is constructed and arranged to overlappingly engage toe rail 42 of the rack (Fig. 4). Said channel may be suitably formed in member l8 between reference line 52 and rear edge Hi. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the rear edge of the channel may abut against an elevated interfering element 54 which may, if desired, comprisethe rear;

-wall of a U-shaped frame including side walls 56. From the foregoing, it will be observed that I have provided a simple inexpensive, yet highly efficient shield or cover member for shoe racks wherein said shields are adapted to be used with various types and styles of racks, and wherein each shield includes a plurality of tabs including flaps in and along their side edges which are conformable to the contour of the supporting members of a rack. In those instances where my shield is associated with a rack of the divergent pin type, pairs 26, the shield will be effectively locked to the rack to preclude accidental or unintentional forward shifting of a shield relative to it rack incident to normal use thereof. In Fig. 5, I have illustrated a blank which has been provided with laterally spaced cuts'fil and In Figs. 2 and 3 edge defininga plurality of tabs 60, 62, 64', 66, 60, I

and 1-2. A slit. I6 intersects each of said tab forming cuts adjacent and spaced inwardly from their respective inner ends, each of said slits preferably being disposed at substantial right angles with its respective out. It will be noted that cuts GI and 63 are divergent and are pairs, thereby providing tabs particularly adapted for use with p'addlestype shoe racks. If desired, score or fold lines I8 may be provided interconnecting the inner end of cuts El and 63 with the ends of their respective slits I6. Slit 16 defines the width of flaps in and'along the side edges of the respective tabs definedby their associated cuts 5| or 63. Slits' I6 and those portions of cuts 6| and 63 disposed intermediate slits I6 and the inner ends of said cuts define contiguous triangular shaped end flaps 80.

In Fig. 6' a typical paddle-type shoe rack is disclosed which includes sets of shoe supporting memberscomprisingalternate narrow and wide paddle members denoted generally by the numerals 82 and 84 respectively. With particular reference to the right side of Fig. 6 it will be noted that the adjacent side edges 86 and 88 of adjoining paddles 84 and 82 are spaced apart by a maximum dimension at or about points 90, said edges converging above point 90 to meet forming an apex at 92 and converging below point 92'} as generally indicated by edges 86 and 58.

The overall length of slits I6 is of a dimension approximating the lateral spacing between adjacent points 90 and the degree of divergence between adjacent tab forming cuts GI and 63 is determined by the characteristics of the shoe rack.

In use the blank of Fig. 5 may be laid upon a paddle-type shoe rack of the general type disclosed in Fig. 6- after which the side flaps I20 defined by cuts 6I63 and slits I6 may be folded downwardly to overlappingly engage an edge of a paddle below points 90. In Fig. 8 such a flap is indicated by the numeral I 20. Contiguous end flaps 80 may then be folded downwardly for overlappingly engaging those portions of the side edge of a paddle between points 90 and apex 92, as disclosed in Figs. 6 and 8.

With reference now to tab 66 of Fig. 6, it will be observed that the flap I20 disposed in and along its leftedge does not, when first formed, conform exactly to the side contour 86 of the paddle covered by the tab, however, it should be understood that when a shoe or shoe form is inserted in opening I00, saidflap will readily conform with the contour of edge 86, intermediate points 90 and 9 I. In the same manner that portion of end flaps 80 intermediate points 90 and apexes 92 will readily conform to the particular contour of the paddles intermediate said points.

As disclosed in the left side of Fig. 6, tabs 60, 62 and- 64 of the shield or cover member are effectively locked to their respective paddles,

against forward and rearward motion relative thereto, it being understood that end flaps 80 will effectively preclude rearward shifting of the shield, whereas side flaps I20 will effectively preclude forward shifting of the shield.

If desired, an elevated hollow toe-cushion channel I02 may be provided longitudinally of the blank intermediate reference lines I04 and I-06 of Fig. 5. In those instances where the rack includes an upstanding U-shaped frame including a rear wall I08 and side walls IIO, the rear edge I I2 of the shield may abut inner face I I4 of hereinabove referred to.

rearwall I08, which comprises an elevatedinter fering element, thereby providing. a surface with which the rear. edge of the form maycooperate for locating and maintaining. the elevated hollow toe cushion, I02 in fixed relationship with reference to the rack. It has beenobserved that the hollow elevated toe cushion channel may be utilized to the exclusion of the usual slat type toe rail. heretofore used by the shoe industry.

- In Fig. 7 I have disclosed a modified type of shield for paddle type shoe racks, said shield combining, in effect, the divergent tab forming cuts BI and 63 of the blank of Fig. 5 with the intersecting slits I 35 ofthe blank of: Fig- 1. However, it will be observed. that slits I35 are concave adjacent the point of intersection I31 with cuts GI and 63, and their outer ends are convex, as illustrated. The particular shape of slits I35 pro.- vides flaps in and along the side edges of the tabs, wherein the innermost end of each. flap, as. clefined by a portion of slits I35 comprises, when the flaps are folded downwardly out of the plane of the body portion of the tabs, downwardly and rearwardly projecting abutment members engageable with the rail portion of a shoe rack, inthe manner similar to that illustrated in Fig. 4, wherein rear edge 00 of flap 34 of tab- 21 abuts forward edge 30 of the rail.

As hereinabove stated, I prefer to fabricate my shields from a soft paper having absorbing and cushioning characteristics such as box or bending board. In order to facilitate ease of use of the shield members, I prefer to form, and then set by means of heat, all or a portion of the flaps disposed in and along the side edges of their respective tabs, thereby facilitating and enhancing the adaptability of my shields to various types of racks. However, the preferred forming opera tion should not be confused with a formal folding-molding operation such as, by way of example, is disclosed in the DiDomenico patent The primary purpose of initially forming my side flaps isto start the formation of such flaps, the exact contour of- Which are then determined by their contact with the support members of a shoe rack.

With reference to Figs. 1, 5, and 7, it will be observed that I have eliminated the need for time consuming, cost increasing scrapping operations, sinceI effectively utilize all portions of the blank except possibly, the corner portions which may. be rounded, as illustrated.

It should be understood that the drawings are exemplary of paddle and dowel type shoe racks, and are not to be construed as limiting or restricting the particular type of paddle or dowel racks with which my shields may be associated. In Fig. 6, I have illustrated a paddle type rack having side edges 86 and 08, however, if desired, these edges could be straight rather than curved. My shield would cooperate equally well with both types.

. It should be understood that various changes and'modi'fications in the structural details of the device may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spiritof the invention.

What is claimed is:

1'. A protective shield for a rack of the type comprising a rail section having projecting therefrom sets of shoe supporting members the upper surfaces of said members lying substantially in a single plane on one side of the rail, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material pro-. vided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from one edge thereof and terminating in an arcuate slit spaced from a second edge disposed in substantial parallelism with said first edge, for providing a plurality of tabs flexibly secured to a longitudinal member having an overall length substantially equal to the combined widths of said tabs.

2. A protective shield for a rack of the type comprising a rail section having projecting therefrom sets of shoe supporting members the upper surfaces of said members lying substantially in a single plane on one side of the rail, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from one edge thereof and terminating in an arcuate slit having its center on its associated and intersecting cut, each of said arcuate slits spaced from a second edge disposed in substantial parallelism with said first edge, for providing a plurality of tab flexibly secured to a longitudinal member having an overall length substantially equal to the combined widths of said tabs.

3. A protective shield for a rack of the type comprising a rail section having projecting therefrom sets of shoe supporting members the upper surfaces of said members lying substantially in a single plane on one side of the rail, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from an edge thereof each terminating centrally of an arcuate slit the chord of which is spaced from a second edge disposed in substantial parallelism with said first edge for providing a plurality of tabs secured to and carried by a strip of material extending across the inner ends of said tabs, wherein the length of chord disposed on opposite sides of each cut defines the overall width dimension of an edge flap in and along the side edges of said tabs.

4. A protective shield for a rack of the type comprising a rail section having projecting therefrom sets of shoe supporting members the upper surfaces of said members lying substantially in a single plane on one side of the rail, said shield fabricated from a sheet of material provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from an edge thereof each terminating centrally of an arouate slit the chord of which is spaced from a second edge disposed in substantial parallelism with said first edge for providing a plurality of tabs secured to and carried by a strip of material extending across the inner ends of said tabs, and wherein the length of chord disposed on opposite sidesof each cut defines the overall width dimension of an edge flap in and along the adjacent side edges of adjoining tabs, the innermost edge of each flap as defined by a portion of said arcuate slit constructed and arranged to provide a downwardly extending rearwardly projecting abutment member.

5. A universal type of disposable shield for shoe racks of the type which comprise a rail section from which a plurality of pairs of laterally spaced shoe supporting members extend, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material formed to provide a plurality of tabs secured to a longitudinal member constructed and arranged to overlappingly engage the rail section of a shoe rack, and wherein adjacent tabs are defined by a cut extending inwardly from an edge and terminating adjacent said longitudinal member in a slit, portions of which project laterally on opposite sides of said out, and wherein said tabs are constructed and arranged to span the adja- 8 cent members of adjoining pairs of shoe supporting members with the side edges of said tabs turned downwardly to overlappingly engage said members throughout substantially their entire length.

6. A universal type of disposal shield for shoe racks of the type which comprise a rail section from which a plurality of pairs of laterally spaced shoe supporting members extend, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material formed to provide a plurality of tabs secured to a longitudinal member constructed and arranged to overlappingly engage the rail section of a shoe rack, and wherein adjacent tabs are defined by a cut extending inwardly from an edge and terminating adjacent said longitudinal member in a slit, portions of which project laterally on opposite sides of said out for defining flaps along the side edges of said tabs foldable downwardly and in conformity with the contour of the outer edge of the adjacent members of adjoining pairs of shoe supporting members spanned by a tab, and wherein the inner edge of each flap, as defined by said slit, provides an abutment member engageable with said rail section adjacent the intersection of a shoe supporting member therewith.

7. A protective shield for a rack of the type comprising a rail section having projecting therefrom sets of shoe supporting members the upper surfaces of said members lying substantially in a single plane on one side of the rail, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from an edge thereof for providing a plurality of tabs secured to and carried by a longitudinal member having an overall length substantially equal to the combined widths of said tabs, a slit intersecting each of said tabforming cuts adjacent their inner ends for defining flaps in and along the side edges of each tab.

8. A protective shield of the class described. fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from an edge thereof for providing a plurality of tabs secured to and carried by a longitudinal member having an overall length substantially equal to the combined widths of said tabs, a slit intersecting each of said tabforming cuts adjacent to but spaced from their respective inner ends for defining a pair of flaps in and along the side edges of each tab, the overall width dimension of which is defined by the length of said slits disposed on opposite sides of their respective intersecting cuts, and a pair of triangular shaped flaps two legs of which are defined by portions of said slits and their intersecting cuts.

9. A protective shield of the class described, fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material provided with a plurality of laterally spaced cuts extending inwardly from an edge thereof for providing a plurality of tabs secured to and carried b a longitudinal member having an overall length substantially equal to the combined widths of said tabs, a slit intersecting each of said tab-forming cuts adjacent their inner ends for defining two pairs of flaps, those comprising one pair being substantially rectangular in shape and disposed in and along the adjacent side edges of adjoining tabs, those comprising the second pair being substantially triangular in shape and disposed in intersecting relationship adjacent the inner ends of said tabs.v

10. A universal type of disposable shieldfor shoe racks of the type which comprise a rail section from which a plurality of pairs of laterally spaced shoe supporting members extend, said shield fabricated from a sheet of fibrous material formed to provide a plurality of tabs secured to a longitudinal member constructed and arranged to overlappingly engage the rail section of a shoe rack, and wherein adjacent tabs are defined by a cut extending inwardly from an edge and terminating adjacent said longitudinal member in a slit, portions of which project laterally on opposite sides of said out for defining flaps along the side edges of said tabs foldable downwardly and in conformity with the contour of the outer edge of the adjacent members of adjoining pairs of shoe supporting members spanned by a tab, and wherein the inner edge of each flap, as defined by said slit, provides an abutment member engageable with said rail section adjacent the intersection of a shoe supporting member therewith, the inner edge of each flap as defined by said slit comprising an abutment edge engageable with the forward face of the rail section for precluding accidental or unintentional rearward displacement of said shield with reference to said rack. V

11. A protecting shield device for a rack of the type comprising a rail having projecting therefrom pairs of divergent dowels, the upper surfaces of said dowels lying substantially in a single plane on one side of the rail, said shield comprising a single initially fiat sheet of paper board having a rail covering portion and a, plurality of dowel covering portions projecting therefrom, the side margins of each of said dowel covering portions being free at each end to permit free flexing of the side margins throughout the length of said margins and defining with the remainder of said dowel covering portions a channel open at the free end whereby dowels of varying length and spacing may be covered.

HARRY A. TOMARIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,221,298 Di Domenico Nov. 17, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 530,885 France Oct. 12, 1921 

